Back off bullies!

Sensei Mike Cellucci from Northeast Family Martial Arts demonstrates the "Stop, Back off" stance against his sister Savannah on Friday at Tiogue Elementary School.
Jessica Boisclair. Kent County Daily Times.

COVENTRY— Sensei Mike Cellucci from the Northeast Family Martial Arts studio taught the students at Tiogue Elementary School how to focus their eyes, mind and body during an anti-bullying presentation Friday morning.

Along with his sister Savannah, a seventh-grader who is currently training to receive her second degree black belt, Cellucci showed the students how to be respectful to parents and teachers.

“When you focus your eyes, you have to make sure you’re looking at your teacher and not looking off,” he said. “Focusing our minds, listen when people are talking and listen to what they are saying; focus your body: make sure we aren’t jittery, or losing our posture, and make sure your sitting and standing up nice and tall.”

He explained to the student-filled gymnasium that there were three main categories of bullying he was going to tell them about: physical, verbal and mental bullying, and exclusion bullying.

The best way to prevent bullying is to use the H.E.L.P. principles.
H stands for “having a plan to avoid bullies,” he said.

By understanding the E principle, “elevate your awareness,” Cellucci told the students they would be able to stay away from a bully.

“Another way is, we try to use common sense before self defense,” he said. “If a bully is threatening to hurt you, you want to walk away from the situation, but it’s not a good idea to turn your back toward a bully.”

He explained to the students that they should, L, “learn to ask for help.” He said there are right ways and wrong ways to ask for help in a bully situation.

“If you have a bully and you yell for a teacher, that’s the wrong way to ask for help,” he said. “The best way to help for help is to ask privately. Ask a teacher if you can come up to their desk and tell them.”